Lighthouse Diner on Hull? Sugar Shack? Pho? What’s the Deal?

Closed in 1970, the Lighthouse Diner on Hull Street has been rumored for the better part of 15 years to be just a few short months away from reopening. As it turns out, that was wishful thinking. The quasi-vintage exterior picture from the City of Richmond’s real estate records shows what it once looked like. The picture below shows its current deteriorated state.

The hopeful stories of restoration started as far back as 2002 with Style Weekly’s announcement “Turning on the Lighthouse.” The article trumpeted “A group of local investors doing business as Prodigy Partnership has entered into a contract to purchase the former Lighthouse Diner at Hull and 13th streets, with plans to start serving blue-plate specials again in about a year.” The Prodigy Partnership group was comprised of D. Hayden Fisher, Jake Crocker, Mike Hanky, Jim Kennedy, and Patrick McLynn.

Fast forward to 2007, and the same Prodigy Partnership group re-enters the picture and is featured on CBS 6 News talking about the project. The video clip is below, and like a blue plate time capsule, lots of cool vintage material remained inside.

And then radio silence for 7 years…bupkis…crickets chirping on Hull St. Are you as confused as I am???

Alas, then came the donut deal of 2014! As reported by Richmond BizSense, Sugar Shack’s Ian Kelley was coming to the rescue of Lighthouse Diner: “Sugar Shack owner hopes to spread sweetness to Manchester.” According to BizSense: “Kelley bought the Lighthouse Diner property at 1228 Hull St. last week. He plans to first renovate part of the space as a warehouse and production kitchen for Sugar Shack’s catering and mobile operations. And then eventually re-open the rest of the property as the Historic Lighthouse Diner.” But apparently the deal was actually financed as a lease to own by Tom Robinson to Kelley. And the lease payments stopped arriving, with no word to Mr. Robinson about what happened.

Then vagrants broke in and stripped all the equipment, materials, and metal from inside. All the cool vintage charm had been lost. Once again, Lighthouse Diner was on the market.

Then it was rumored that Stephen J. Parson was buying the property. But apparently he and his pastor family got all tangled up in litigation related to the contested sale of the bankrupt church and its assets, Richmond Christian Center, as reported by Richmond BizSense: Pastor’s son settles disputes with bankrupt church. Again, the beleaguered diner was on the market.

Enter stage right…Pho Saigon. Apparently Dangminh Thi Nguyen owner of the West End’s Pho Saigon contracted to purchase the property. But title issues that Mr. Robinson thought were resolved long ago reappeared and contributed to the property lingering in a state of limbo. Apparently, those issues were successfully resolved in court, and the property finally changed hands on September 2, 2016 with “special financing” provided by the seller.

Yippie, time to get some Pho right?! Well not so fast. My dreams of pho were dashed as I was told the new owner only bought the property as an “investment.” As such, it continues to sit in a state of disrepair with no signs of work being done to stabilize the property.

Adding to the dilemma is the City of Richmond’s parking requirements. While Hull Street is a special parking exempt district, that exemption does not apply to restaurants. That means the 3,978 square foot space if opened as a restaurant is likely going to be required to come up with approximately 13 parking spaces in order to be issued a business license. Given the lack of off-street parking along the Hull Street business corridor, there is a snowball’s chance in you know where of coming up with that type of parking.

So unless a miracle happens, Lighthouse Diner will remain a dark house of disrepair blighting Hull Street. Boo Hiss!

That’s a tough one John. Several property owners who are trying to overcome the same issue on Hull St and are being blocked from opening anything because of this parking dilemma, would likely take issue with a SUP unless they get the same exemption. Others who have already started (or plan) to tear down buildings in order to obtain the required off-street parking might also take issue. IMHO, the parking exemption needs to be amended so it applies for all uses, including restaurants. That way it is a level playing field for everyone, and the restauranteurs don’t have to get dragged through the lengthy/expensive/uncertain SUP process.

The City’s parking requirements are a joke. Part of living in the city is lack of parking. The parking requirement puts city restaurateurs at a huge disadvantage to their county counterparts. The requirement stifles positive changes, investment and development which results in blight. The Hull Street Corridor should be exempt from all parking requirements. Period. Restaurants attract people. More people is more foot traffic which will attract more businesses to take a chance to open a business on Hull Street. Without attracting new business and investment, Hull Street will remain blighted except for the few businesses that took a chance. I commend those that have invested in Hull Street.

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The Dogtown Dish is dedicated to serving up the latest news for Richmond, Virginia’s historic Manchester and Swansboro neighborhoods. We are the authority on all things Manchester & Swansboro RVA related, with occasional coverage of broader Richmond related topics of interest.